Abilities ambassadors hale from all corners of the disability community. They are leaders, writers, artists, entrepreneurs, veterans, athletes, celebrities, advocates and parents to special needs kids, and they may have just the answers you are looking for.

If you have a story to tell to the disability community, then we want to hear it! It could be an informative article on the range of subjects featured to the left. It could be meaningful advice base on your wealth of experience. It could be serious or entertaining and conveyed through words, video or images. It just has to be your story.

The Case for Wheels: Selecting the Clinically Appropriate Base

Individuals with chronic medical conditions and long-term disabilities who have a permanent need for a wheelchair require a comprehensive, detailed evaluation of their physical, functional and environmental needs to allow clinicians and ATP suppliers to make appropriate Assistive Technology recommendations for a successful outcome.

There are many factors to consider when making the selection of the appropriate power wheelchair base with an end user. Providers and clinicians need a hands-on awareness of the interaction of all of these factors, and more importantly, how they will come together to either enhance, or diminish the effectiveness of the PMD for their patient.

This course will provide information about each drive wheel configuration and things that clinicians and suppliers need to think about. Participants will then enter the expo hall to experience driving different drive wheel configurations and then regroup to discuss their findings and how the different drive wheel configurations effected the wheelchairs driving in different environmental conditions (indoors, outdoors, etc..). For more information, click here.

11:45am – 12:45pm

Home Modifications

Can I retrofit my master bathroom to include a spacious roll-in shower? What must I do to install an elevator in my two-story home? How can my flower garden be made more accessible? Who should I hire to make sure my home renovation project will fit my needs? Accessible Home Design: The Basics will address improving the accessibility in each specific area of a home, as well as what you need to know before taking on a renovation project. Whether it's a new accessible residence or retrofitting your existing home, information will be presented with real examples and case studies. Subject matter will include entering your home; residential elevators and lifts, kitchen design, bathrooms and plumbing fixtures, doors, windows, outdoor areas and gardens, and much more.
Learn More: http://www.pva.org/

1:00pm- 2:00pm

Access the World: Tips for Traveling with a Disability

Would you like to travel the country or the world, but believe you cannot because of your disability? At this workshop you will learn that travel by air, sea and car is a real option for you. The presenter, a professional travel agent who has a disability and has travelled extensively, will share with you how to plan a trip, including what to expect form hotels, rental car companies, cruise lines and the airlines. Learn about the common challenges, methods for addressing them and what the law requires. Attendees will receive recommendations for disability-friendly destinations and accessible travel resources. Be sure to bring your pressing questions and a list of places you'd like to visit.
Learn more: www.easyaccesstravel.com

2:30pm – 3:30pm

Pain Management

Presented by: Casey Cashman, US Pain Foundation

Location: Workshop

In America pain affects 100 million adults - more people than heart disease, cancer and diabetes combined. This presentation will offer tips for those living with chronic pain, including ways to work through pain on your own. Discover steps you can take on your own, today, to gain some of your life back from pain. From traditional approaches to alternative therapies, much is available with the potential to lower your pain.
For resources, programs and publications: https://www.uspainfoundation.org/

3:45pm – 4:45pm

The Disability Playbook: Dating, Relationships and Intimacy

Dating can be a challenge. But when we approach the dating scene with confidence and some basic A-game strategies, the experience can be amazing. Attendees will learn do's and don'ts of dating; tips for creating healthy boundaries; how living fiercely through self-care plays into attraction; and suggestions for connecting with potential partners in person, online and through phone apps. This peer-led interactive workshop is an opportunity to engage in a variety of approaches to flirting and landing a date––including a chance to win a date night. So if you're a young adult or adult with a disability who is seeking friendship, a relationship or intimacy, consider this your dating with a disability playbook, with all of the information you need to get yourself ready for your next date.

This workshop is led by a panel that represents a cross-section of disabilities, genders, ages, races, cultures, and relationship experiences, and includes: Krystle Allen, A.S., the first legally blind, plus-size titleholder for the New York fashion competition, The Face of Kurvacious Ms. Kapable Kurves; Millie Gonzalez, M.A., Ms. Wheelchair New Jersey 2019; Tara Invidiato, M.Ed., the first Deafblind titleholder of the Ms. Blind Diva Empowerment 2018 pageant; and Brandon Scott, BSW, the champion of the inaugural Dancing with the Blind competition.

Saturday, May 4, 2019

11:45am – 12:45pm

Disability Rights New York

Presented by: Melissa Martinez, Analyst for the Rep Payee Program with Disability Rights New York

Location: Workshop

Disability Rights New York (DRNY) is the Protection & Advocacy System (P & A) for New York State. DRNY provides free legal services for individual with disabilities. Our variety or programs each offer unique services and resources to accommodate every individual. Our new program, Protection & Advocacy for Beneficiaries with Representative Payees further seeks to protect individuals who receive Social Security benefits and who have a representative payee handling the funds. Visit our workshop to see how you can benefit from DRNY!
Learn more: www.drny.org

1:00pm – 2:00pm

Critical Situations for People with SCI

The following workshop is presented by the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation and is geared toward anyone who lives with paralysis from disease, injury or birth condition and their loved ones. Learn more at www.christopherreeve.org

Location: Workshop

It can be difficult to know when to call for assistance while dealing with paralysis or spinal cord injury. Messages from the body to the brain can be misdirected or misinterpreted. Recognizing a disguised significant healthcare problem can be challenging. Issues with taking medication properly, cardiac issues or infection can start as small concerns but can quickly escalate to emergently needed care. How to know when a small problem becomes huge is critical information for your health and well-being. Areas of focus include correctly taking medication, irregular heartbeats, blood clots, Autonomic Dysreflexia (AD), pneumonia, Urinary Tract Infection and sepsis. In addition, your questions will be discussed.
Learn More: https://www.christopherreeve.org

2:30pm – 3:30pm

Cannabis 101

In this overview, you will learn basics necessary to navigate the emerging legal marketplace, as well as history of medicinal cannabinoid compounds used to heal both mind and body for millennia. Discover the ABC's of cannabis, from health and wellness benefits, to various delivery methods, to the science behind the human body's endocannabinoid regulatory system. Join us and learn how to choose a shop, what to look for in products, how to manage dosing, and what the laws actually mean for patients!
Learn More: http://californiacannabisadvocates.org and http://www.smartpharmresearch.com/

3:45pm – 4:45pm

ABLE: Saving for what you need, while protecting what you have

Presented by: Anne Del Plato, Director of New York's ABLE and College Savings Programs

Location: Workshop

Tax-advantaged ABLE Savings Programs are helping people with disabilities around the country to save for disability expenses without impacting eligibility for federal means-tested programs like SSI and Medicaid.
Representatives from the Office of the New York State Comptroller will provide an information session on ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) Programs in general and NY's ABLE Program specifically.
Learn More: https://www.mynyable.org

Sunday, May 5, 2019

11:45am – 12:45pm

Accessible Travel-You can do it!

Kristy is going to share with you lots of information and wheelchair travel tips so you too, can experience the wonderful world of travel. Don't let a wheelchair stop you fromexploring the world. You will come away with the feeling I Can Do it!
Learn More: http://www.wheelchairescapes.com/

1:00pm – 2:00pm

Care for the Caregiver: When You Can't Stop the Waves Learn How to Sail

Insurance Fraud

Are you aware of the level of deception and sophistication associated with insurance fraud today? Insurance Fraud is more pervasive and damaging than you might realize. Everyone is vulnerable to becoming a victim of insurance fraud, directly or indirectly. In this session, attendees will learn about the different forms of insurance fraud that occur every day. Plus, find out how to identify potentially fraudulent insurance schemes and why you should report suspected activities to the New Jersey Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor.
Learn More: http://www.njinsurancefraud.org/